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> and contemplated the mistake I had made Reminds me of my own "contemplation" on the way back out of the Grand Canyon. Getting down there is hard. Getting bac

by m0zg 5y ago

> and contemplated the mistake I had made Reminds me of my own "contemplation" on the way back out of the Grand Canyon. Getting down there is hard. Getting back up is way harder. And the only "food" I took with me was a six pack of beer, so somewhere halfway back up my body ran out of glycogen and I couldn't even maintain my body temperature. Thought I was gonna die, and realistically I could have died, actually. I was there alone, and had I sat down to "rest" that could have been it. Moral of the story: if you're going to attempt something physically demanding like this, at a minimum have plenty of energy dense food, water, and a thermal blanket with you. That's how I pack for longer hikes nowadays.

gen220 5y ago
When we were kids, one of the adults in our Boy Scout troop would read stories from this book [1] each week, to encourage us to follow the motto, “Be Prepared”, when it comes to hikes and such. Unfortunately, as you suggest, your story is commonplace and doesn’t always end well :/. The takeaways I remember: (1) never hike the Grand Canyon, or any place with high exposure, in the summer, unless you’re extremely prepared for extreme weather (2) always pack the ten essentials [2] (3) when attempting a long or arduous hike, always inform an accountable third party of when and where you’re going. Hopefully this helps somebody avoid a similar situation in the future! [1]: https://www.amazon.com/Over-Edge-Death-Grand-Canyon/dp/097009731X https://www.amazon.com/Over-Edge-Death-Grand-Canyon/dp/09700... [2]: https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ten-essentials.html https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ten-essentials.html
C19is20 5y ago
'Energy dense food' = sugar.
- m0zg 5y ago
  More like bread and bread-like things. Sugar has to pass through your liver first, so it's not instantly available. Nuts, which are often recommended, are also energy dense, but harder to fully digest, unless you chew them really freakin' well, which nobody does.
  - 5e92cb50239222b 5y ago
    Pass them through a coffee grinder. The paste is easy to eat in large quantities and is very energy dense.
ensiferum 5y ago
Years ago I hikes around Annapurna in Nepal. Going through Thorong La (spelling) pass goes up to 5400m and can have snow any time of year. I saw several unprepared hikers who had simple summer gear with them only. The locals hike this route in flip flops sometimes. Fee years after that there was the big earthquake which killed ppl at Mt. Everest and around the same time that Annapurna area got around 2m of snow in 24h. Several ill prepared hikers got lost and died in the snow storm.
MandieD 5y ago
My husband and I went there in December, which I highly endorse. It was frigid when we started, cool when we got as far as we thought prudent for a day hike, and we were sweating and down to t-shirts by the time we made it back up top. Time management: think about how long you want to be out. Divide by 3. Once you hit that first third, turn around. I follow this rule on my bike as well when riding downriver if the train situation is uncertain. I do not appear to be nearly as well-trained as the rest of you commenting on this.

by m0zg 5y ago

gen220 5y ago

When we were kids, one of the adults in our Boy Scout troop would read stories from this book [1] each week, to encourage us to follow the motto, “Be Prepared”, when it comes to hikes and such. Unfortunately, as you suggest, your story is commonplace and doesn’t always end well :/. The takeaways I remember: (1) never hike the Grand Canyon, or any place with high exposure, in the summer, unless you’re extremely prepared for extreme weather (2) always pack the ten essentials [2] (3) when attempting a long or arduous hike, always inform an accountable third party of when and where you’re going. Hopefully this helps somebody avoid a similar situation in the future! [1]: https://www.amazon.com/Over-Edge-Death-Grand-Canyon/dp/097009731X https://www.amazon.com/Over-Edge-Death-Grand-Canyon/dp/09700... [2]: https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ten-essentials.html https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ten-essentials.html

C19is20 5y ago

'Energy dense food' = sugar.

m0zg 5y ago
More like bread and bread-like things. Sugar has to pass through your liver first, so it's not instantly available. Nuts, which are often recommended, are also energy dense, but harder to fully digest, unless you chew them really freakin' well, which nobody does.
- 5e92cb50239222b 5y ago
  Pass them through a coffee grinder. The paste is easy to eat in large quantities and is very energy dense.

ensiferum 5y ago

Years ago I hikes around Annapurna in Nepal. Going through Thorong La (spelling) pass goes up to 5400m and can have snow any time of year. I saw several unprepared hikers who had simple summer gear with them only. The locals hike this route in flip flops sometimes. Fee years after that there was the big earthquake which killed ppl at Mt. Everest and around the same time that Annapurna area got around 2m of snow in 24h. Several ill prepared hikers got lost and died in the snow storm.

MandieD 5y ago

My husband and I went there in December, which I highly endorse. It was frigid when we started, cool when we got as far as we thought prudent for a day hike, and we were sweating and down to t-shirts by the time we made it back up top. Time management: think about how long you want to be out. Divide by 3. Once you hit that first third, turn around. I follow this rule on my bike as well when riding downriver if the train situation is uncertain. I do not appear to be nearly as well-trained as the rest of you commenting on this.